


The Perks of Well Done Stirring

by scrawlerem



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Amortentia, F/M, Harry Potter Crossover - Freeform, M/M, Tropes, percabeth, percy jackson - Freeform, percy jackson x annabeth chase, percy x annabeth - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-30
Updated: 2016-12-30
Packaged: 2018-09-13 09:44:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9118255
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scrawlerem/pseuds/scrawlerem
Summary: “This potion is one of the things which is perceived to make you wiser if you smell the aroma. It can unlock feelings you didn’t know you had or bring back memories if they were marked by a smell.” This just made Percy more nervous. He didn’t quite realise how powerful the potion was either. “Will you…”. She hesitated, “will you tell me what it smells like to you?”





	

**Author's Note:**

> 1\. Set in the summer after TLO, to work with the story, the rest of the seven are just part of the new wave of half-bloods at camp because of the gods new obligation to claiming (ty percy). But their relationships / friendships are on the whole, the same.  
> 2\. Percy and Annabeth are not yet to everyone's dismay

“So if you need a child of Aphrodite to complete the potion with an incantation in the first place, remind me again why I have to learn how to brew this thing?” Nico grumbled from across the room.

“ _Because_ ,” Drew narrowed her eyes, directing her glare at Nico, “This potion can be as powerful a tool as any in battle. Love and desire can make man and monster do anything. Including transferring one’s alliance. Imagine if this potion was used in the enemy’s food rations, they wouldn’t be able to achieve anything with all the professing of undying love for one another.” Nico shrugged and squirmed a little under Drew’s gaze. Percy couldn’t blame him; he’d been on the other side of the glare too many times not to realise that Drew had a little help from her mum on that one.

“Besides,” Piper spoke up, trying to ease the mood, “Every cabin is meant to run an activity so we can develop different skills, this is what Aphrodite is contributing.”

“Also this is better than having you ramble on and on about the fragile line between mortality and death.” Leo mocked. Nico’s pale skin went a fair shade of pink.

 

The room had been set up with benches that seated two; facing towards a larger bench where Drew and Piper stood. It reminded Percy too much of a science classroom to be too enthralled with the activity that lay ahead. Although Piper was helping to run it, so he had hope.

Frank was sitting next to him but his attention was elsewhere as he kept glancing left towards Hazel who was chatting happily to Katie Gardner. Percy smiled slightly to himself as Drew began to speak again.

“Moving on, we decided we’re going to do this in pairs so the potions will be brewed at a much faster pace.” Drew concluded. “To begin…” She began reading the pairs off a clipboard and immediately Percy had a suspicion that Piper had a rather large input to this portion of the activity. As most pairs, were couples, or better said, anticipated couples. “Frank and Hazel” Drew read out. Percy saw Frank try to hide a smile as he stood up to go sit next to Hazel. Percy clapped him on the back as he moved away. He made eye contact with Piper and shot her a thumbs up, she replied with double finger guns.

“Nico and Will” Drew continued and he saw Nico walk grumpily towards the son of Apollo, although he’d known Nico long enough to tell he wasn’t really angry. Percy heard a few other suspiciously convenient pairs pop up as they neared the end of the list and finally Drew had finished as Katie walked towards Travis Stoll. Percy looked around the room and saw him and Jason were the only two without partners. That was good by him. But then Percy noticed Piper suddenly looking around with a sense of urgency, scanning the crowd for someone who obviously was not present. Drew pursed her lips, with a sense of triumph. “Then I suppose Piper can go with Jason.”

With that, Piper made her way towards her boyfriend, but she wasn’t smiling like Percy thought she would be. She was looking frantically apologetic, at him. “Which I guess leaves Percy with me.” Drew said nonchalantly.

Percy felt the colour drain from his face as he felt his impending doom come upon on him. He really didn’t have much against the daughter of Aphrodite but somehow he doubted this was an activity in which he wanted to be paired with her. He looked at Piper in desperation as she passed him on the way to Jason. “Sorry.” She whispered when she was next to him. Drew moved towards him slowly and Percy could feel the next hour and a half descend into hell before his eyes. But before Drew reached him, Annabeth saved his life.

She ran into the room, late, murmuring a quick sorry to Drew. Her cheeks pink from the run here. He noticed Annabeth’s blonde curls were loosely secured in low pony-tail but there were quite a few runaways which were falling out. She looked like she’d just woken up which would explain her tardiness. She’d been so busy with the redesign on Olympus lately she’d been missing a lot of sleep. Percy didn’t understand how she could look like that with only a few minutes in the world of the waking.

Quickly Piper stood up. “No worries Annabeth, just in time actually.” She beamed at Annabeth while she responded with a quizzical look. “Who does it say Annabeth’s partner is again, Drew?” Piper asked innocently. Drew pretended to look down and search for Annabeth’s name although it was clear she already knew.

“Percy Jackson.” She said venomously. Leo emitted a whistle from across the room.

“Sweet”, was all Annabeth said as she found Percy in the crowd and made her way towards him. _Life intact? Check_ , He thought.

 

\-------------------------------------------------------------

 

Percy decided love potion brewing was probably somewhere up there with things he was worst at, probably just one notch below archery. If Annabeth wasn’t there deciphering the ominous instructions in front of them, he was certain he would’ve created some sort of explosion by now. This really was too much like science.

“Percy, you can’t put the heat on high yet, it has to be on low” Annabeth said, exasperated.

“But that would cut the time in half! Otherwise I have to stir for another 15 minutes.” Percy complained.

“Yeah but otherwise the potion won’t work.” Annabeth pointed out. Percy sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

“I mean you have a point.” He grumbled and continued the slow stirring process. Annabeth gave him a small smile as she went to get more supplies from the front table. Percy’s stomach squirmed.

He looked around. Everyone seemed to be having more success than them. Piper and Jason seemed to be nearly finished and Nico was laughing, tinted pink as Will teased him. Or rather flirted, Percy realised. Everyone seemed to be having a good time. But here Percy was, messing up every second step and Annabeth got slowly more frustrated with the process. Which Percy could tell was making her dyslexia act up. This he figured out when she attempted to begin chopping the edge of her _boots_ when they were supposed to be using _roots_.

 

\-------------------------------------------------------------

 

A few steps later, Percy sat in a daze, still stirring the pot. The vibe had changed over the last few minutes as the potions were reaching their point of conclusion and thus starting to emit their power. They were supposed to smell different to everyone, reflecting what scents you find most alluring. Percy couldn’t pick out a specific scent yet but the aroma was already spreading a warmth through him and he was embarrassed to admit that he liked it. He felt sleepy, if he could just close his eyes for a minute… Piper’s voice broke him out of his daze.

“Everyone might want to put on their nose clips pegs now.” She said nervously as she saw the potion taking effect on the people across the room. Percy reached slowly to the comical pegs that lay on his desk and put one painfully on his nose. Immediately his head cleared and he sat up alert. He felt the warmness leave him and an emptiness where it left. Attempting to shake the feeling off, he looked over at Annabeth, who too was in a daze with her head on the bench, eyes half closed, slowly chopping the roots. Percy felt himself smile, the emptiness of before forgotten. He reached over for a second nose peg and secured it on Annabeth’s nose without protest. Suddenly she sat up and shook her head as if only just waking up from a sleep. Her face flushed as an effect of the potion around her.

“I thought I’d lost you there.” Percy observed. Annabeth’s flush increased.

“That stuff really is powerful.” She said, as if surprised.

“Well it’s good to know we’re doing it right.” Percy offered. Annabeth nodded and continued to chop. But Percy’s gaze stayed on her, what he thought was a side effect from the potion left a giddy feeling in his stomach as he looked at her. “Could you uh…” He stopped himself. That was a _really_ personal question.

“Could I what?” She asked, eyebrows raised. Percy shrugged.

“Could you smell anything yet?” He asked, nervously. The similar look of nervousness Percy felt crossed her face.

“Not yet.” She admitted. “But this is the reason I made such a fuss to get to this class, even though I’d missed breakfast and everything. It’s like the sirens.” Annabeth explained, Percy remembered their trip to the Sea of Monsters when they were twelve. It was a startling reminder to just how long both of them had been friends. “This potion is one of the things which is perceived to make you wiser if you smell the aroma. It can unlock feelings you didn’t know you had or bring back memories if they were marked by a smell.” This just made Percy more nervous. He didn’t quite realise how powerful the potion was either. “Will you…”. She hesitated, “will you tell me what it smells like to you?”

“Of course.” Percy said without missing a beat. He and Annabeth had been through enough that he could trust her with something like this. “And you’ll tell me?” Annabeth nodded again and smiled and Percy felt a familiar tug in his stomach. It was then he noticed his hand on hers on the table. He didn’t know how long they’d been touching but had a feeling it had been since the potions aroma has begun to take its effect. He awkwardly pulled his hand away and Annabeth looked surprised as she too didn’t realise it was there. Her expression changed to the look of loss he had when he was cut off from the smell of the love potion.

Suddenly Percy had a flashback to all those times they’d been together over the years. How many life endangering experiences had they been through? He got another one of those rushes which just made him thankful they were both still alive. He remembered the vision of Annabeth pulling him out of the River of Styx and he realised he wasn’t sure that building feeling in his gut wasn’t only the potions fault.

“Annabeth I-“ He started until her watch timer went off signifying time to turn off the heat and stop the stirring. He faltered, his confidence lost. Percy retreated his hand from the stirring and spoon and sighed in relief. “I thought that was going to be the end of me.”

“Percy Jackson.” Annabeth said, amused. “Saves Olympus with no problem but thinks copious amount of stirring could kill him.”

“Hey – that was a half an hour effort.” Annabeth laughed and rolled her eyes, slowly adding the roots to the potion. Drew’s voice cut through the crowd.

“Okay I can see quite a few of you finishing up. Once you’re done just call over an Aphrodite child and we can just add a little bit of extra love magic for it to be complete.” She said, adding a wink aimed at Percy. Annabeth made an involuntarily sound of disapproval beside him. Leading everyone in the room to look at the, her cheeks turned rosy. Drew continued. “We will then store your potion, if it is done correctly.” She eyed Nico and Will, who’s area seemed to be producing a yellowish steam.

“Once it is complete, feel free to smell your potion. You should be able to smell at least three distinct scents if it’s done correctly. If you can smell only two, somethings wrong. And don’t worry, It won’t put you under the potions love effect, so you won’t confess your love to the first person you see.” Piper joked. “However, it does heighten emotions, it makes your moods extreme.” She warned. Once she was finished, Percy waved Piper over to say our incantation before Drew could have the chance and cause anymore trouble.

 

\-------------------------------------------------------------

 

It took another five minutes for Piper to be finished and wander off to the next group in need of aid before their potion was ready. Annabeth and Percy both stared at the potion. He could see a small amount of fear in her stormy eyes which he was certain were reflected in his.

“How many monsters have we faced and a bit of liquid still scares us?” Annabeth joked feebly. Percy let out a small laugh and took deep breath.

“On the count of three?” He asked. Annabeth nodded nervously. “One. Two. Three.” Together they took of their nose pegs and immediately hit with the most intoxicating scents Percy had ever experienced. He couldn’t pick out most of them, couldn’t even describe them but together they smelt phenomenal. The complete potion didn’t have a daze effect like before. Now Percy felt wide awake.

“Oh my gods,” Annabeth sighed beside him. Percy couldn’t help but agree. They were both beaming, the scent making them giddy.

“Strawberries.” Percy said, surprised that was the first thing he could distinctly pick out. Annabeth nodded, unfazed.

“Probably because of camp.” She theorised. That sounded right and it was definitely something very important to him. She paused, breathing deeply.

“Old scrolls.” She said contently.

“The Athena cabin?” Percy questioned. She nodded. He tried to pick out other scents.

“Homemade chocolate chip cookies.” He said, unsurprised, everything about them felt like being home with his mum.

“Blueberries” Annabeth sighed. Percy waited, if she wanted to explain she would. “Thalia, Luke and I would always eat blueberries in our hideouts. They were our main food source.” She explained. Percy nodded, makes sense. Percy felt his hands shake slightly as he tried for the last one. He was certain it would be the most important. Annabeth mimicked him, leaning closer to the potion, attempting to secure the last scent. A moment past of the two of them like that, then another, then another until Percy was certain there was absolutely nothing out of the ordinary with the last smell. Percy was the first to admit it, they’d messed up somehow. The giddy mood they had around them came crashing down suddenly as their emotions dipped.

“That’s it.” Percy said throwing his hands up in protest. “I can’t smell anything.”

“That’s impossible!” Annabeth exclaimed. “I’m certain I got this right.”

“Well obviously not, I guess.” Percy replied. Annabeth paused and pursed her lips. “What?” He asked defensively as she looked at him.

“Perhaps if you’d been more careful with your stirring...” Annabeth nagged.

“This is my fault?” Percy questioned. “Well you did read every second instruction wrong!” She pointed angrily. In the back of his mind he could hear Piper’s warning about how the potion heightened one’s emotions but it didn’t stop his anger from slowly rising.

“ _I’m_ _sorry_ I can’t smell anything other than the bucket load of apple scented shampoo you used this morning!” Percy snapped. Annabeth scowled and Percy was well aware of most of the room watching them now.

“ _Me?_ You stink of salt water so much I’m going to have an asthma attack!” She replied. Percy couldn’t help but scoff. He could feel his cheeks burning, his emotions spinning out of control. Annabeth’s cheeks were as red as Rachel’s hair.

“That’s rich. I haven’t been to the beach in a week.” Percy said while he rolled his eyes.

“Yeah well I ran out of that shampoo a five days ago!”

“Yeah well you –" Percy faltered as he heard the campers around him break out in a series of sniggers. Annabeth’s look of anger fell from her face as the laughter around the room continued.

“Wha-? Oh.” Annabeth’s face dawned with realisation and her entire body seemed to turn a deep shade of red. Percy still was confused.

“What’s so funny?” Percy asked, embarrassed. Leo’s laugh was heard from across the room.

“Annabeth maybe you should enlighten your _friend_ Percy here.” Leo said, wiggling his eyebrows. Only a few people across the room were polite enough to look embarrassed for Percy. He made a mental note to only hang out with Frank and Hazel from now on. Even Piper had her hand over her mouth to conceal a laugh.

“Annabeth?” Percy asked worriedly.

“Uhhh.” She mumbled. Annabeth Chase, lost for words, that was a sight you rarely saw. She was looking at him differently too, like she couldn’t quite believe her luck. This was really started to freak him out, did he grow a second head or something? Another moment of silence passed until, of all people, Nico came through.

“For gods sake Percy,” He sighed, rolling his eyes. “You’re supposed to smell three things that reflect something really important to you, something that reveals a thing you _love_. You’re on your third scent but you can’t smell anything because _Annabeth’s apple shampoo is too overpowering_. The shampoo she has been wearing _for years_.” He said slowly. “You know, her _scent,_ and she can’t smell anything because you smell like the ocean. Which you _always_ smell like. You getting me yet?” Suddenly the room felt hot to Percy. Who stood there like one of Apollo’s sacred cows: slow, dumb and very very red. Percy gulped.

“You-?” He asked hesitantly.

“Yes.” She replied automatically, seemingly finding her voice.

“Bu-?” Percy started.

But Annabeth wasn’t going to wait a moment longer. In an instant, with the whole camp around them, Annabeth flung her arms around Percy’s neck and kissed him. He would later describe it as the feeling of his brain was melting out of his body. Their faces touched, hot from embarrassment but filled with a spark that Percy realised he’d been waiting for a long time. He wrapped an arm around her waist. Cheers erupted around them and they weren’t able to keep up the kiss long as Annabeth broke out into a grin and buried her head in Percy shoulder, still smiling. Percy beamed.

“Half an hour effort worth it now, Seaweed Brain?” She mumbled into his chest.

“I will never complain about stirring again.” He replied and she let of melodic laugh that Percy was certain he’d never quite get out of his head.

**Author's Note:**

> 1\. woooo hope you enjoyed & the difference from cannon wasn't too confusing  
> 2\. also you've probably picked up that the potion they brewed is totally, obviously, 100% inspired by amortentia by hp


End file.
